The present disclosure relates to electronic circuits and methods, and in particular, to dynamic power divider circuits and methods.
Power consumption in electronic circuits is a subject that is gaining increased attention. As the use of electronic devices becomes ubiquitous, the power consumed by these devices escalates, placing increasing demands on infrastructure and the environment. For example, wireless devices are contemporary culprits in the growing demand and consumption of energy and power. Circuitry inside RF transceivers often consumes large amounts of power to transmit, receive, and process RF communication signals.
One example circuit component that often inefficient and power hungry is the power amplifier. In a wireless application, a power amplifier receives a wireless communication signal and increases the power of the signal for transmission on an antenna. Processing the signal for transmission on the antenna may include dividing the signal along multiple signal paths, amplifying the signal to increase the voltage and/or current, and combining signals for transmission on an antenna. In cases where a signal is coupled along multiple paths, signal power is also typically divided among the paths. Over changing operating conditions, it is sometimes the case that particular paths may be less active or altogether inactive during some operating conditions and the signal power provided to such paths is wasted.